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Monastery · Altındere Mahallesi, Maçka, Trabzon · Turkey

Sümela Monastery

Sümela Manastırı

A Greek Orthodox monastery built into a sheer cliff face about 300 m above the Altındere valley floor, in Trabzon Province, reached by road and then on foot along a forest path and a long staircase. On UNESCO's Tentative List.

Where it is

Explore on XTOUR Map
Open Sümela Monastery on the XTOUR map. Directions are available there.

40.6900, 39.6583

Why go

Sümela Monastery is a Greek Orthodox monastery built into a sheer rock face roughly 300 m above the valley floor, within Altındere Vadisi Milli Parkı (Altındere Valley National Park) in Trabzon Province's Maçka district. Its most visible structures date from the 13th–18th centuries, on a site with a traditional founding legend reaching back to the 4th century. It preserves Byzantine-era frescoes; some interior sections have had long-running restoration work, so current fresco/interior access can vary and should be checked on arrival rather than assumed from older descriptions. The monastery itself is run as a museum by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, which places it on UNESCO's Tentative List (not the World Heritage List); the surrounding national park is a separate authority (DKMP, under the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry). According to the Ministry, visitors reach Sümela by car and then follow a path through the forest; a long, narrow staircase leads to the main entrance, and works from 2015 to 2019 renewed the stairs and laid a 300-metre walkway.

Getting there

Within Altındere Vadisi Milli Parkı, Maçka district, Trabzon Province — official address Altındere Mahallesi, Altındere Vadisi, 61750, Trabzon. This coordinate marks the monastery building itself, on a cliff face; it is not where a road ends. No coordinate for the car park or the start of the forest path could be confirmed (checked directly 2026-09-27), so do not navigate to this pin expecting to drive to the door. According to the Ministry's muze.gov.tr listing, visitors arrive by car and then walk a forest path, with a long staircase to the entrance. Some secondary reports describe vehicles being stopped short of the site and a shuttle running; XTOUR has not verified any current shuttle arrangement or fare. Hours per muze.gov.tr: 08:00–19:00, ticket booth closes 18:30, open daily. Fee: €20 for foreign visitors (Ministry's 2026 DÖSİMM schedule); Turkish citizens are admitted via Müzekart rather than a posted TL price. The national park's own entrance fee is not confirmed by a primary source. The site is occasionally closed on specific dates (recorded closed 8–16 June 2026 in the Ministry's own schedule) — check current status before travelling.

Best time to visit

No official closure calendar was found, but real winter weather (snow) can restrict road or shuttle access unpredictably, per multiple 2026-dated sources describing weather-contingent closures at this site. Treat winter visits as a same-day check, not a guaranteed plan.

Through the year

Open officially year-round per muze.gov.tr, but winter snow can close the access road without a fixed, published closure calendar — a weather-driven access risk, not a scheduled seasonal closure.

Accessibility

The Ministry describes a forest path and a long, narrow staircase to the main entrance; no source found describes a step-free alternative.

Base yourself nearby

City

Trabzon

Trabzon is the main city of Türkiye's eastern Black Sea coast and the base for Sümela Monastery and Uzungöl. In the city itself are the 13th-century Hagia Sophia of Trabzon, the Ministry's Trabzon Museum in the Kostaki Mansion, the small St Anna church, and the Boztepe viewing terrace above the harbour.

Near Sümela Monastery